DID EARTH ONCE HAVE MULTIPLE MOONS?

Thu, 08 May 2008 16:57:25 GMT

clipped by: vk2yoc
clipper's remarks: Lucky we still don't, it would mean more Lunatics!

Did Multiple Moons Known as Trojans Once Orbit the Earth?

The history of planet Earth is a fascinating story, involving catastrophic collisions with other small planets and a veritable plethora of asteroid impacts. The prevailing theory about the formation of the moon is called the giant impact hypothesis: the theory goes that a Mars-sized object, known as Theia, crashed in to the young Earth. What was left was Earth, and its moon.

"The giant impact that likely led to the formation of the Moon launched a lot of material into Earth orbit, and some could well have been caught in the Langrangian points," -points in space where the gravity between two objects cancels the other out, said says study team member Lissauer. Their theory places small moonlets, or Trojans, in Earth’s orbit, for up to 100 million years.

Over time, gravitational tugs from other planets would have eventually altered Earth’s orbit, even if it was only slightly. Thus, the Langrangian points would have altered

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DID EARTH ONCE HAVE MULTIPLE MOONS?

Did Multiple Moons Known as Trojans Once Orbit the Earth?